A pair of Montgomery County, Maryland, parents are facing up to 30 years in prison for six counts of child neglect in a case that started after one child died in their home.
The 17-year-old weighed only 79 pounds when emergency officials were called to Dominique and Cynthia Moore’s Montgomery Village home in May of 2022.
The child was pronounced dead by first responders. An autopsy found that the child’s death was a homicide because the child was not given adequate care for the child’s medical conditions. Officials said six other minor children also lived in the home.
“Because of the unsanitary living conditions, six minor children, ranging between the ages of 15 and 5-years-old, were removed from the home and placed in the care of Child Protective Services. Two children over the age of 18 also lived in the home,” police said in a release last year.
Investigators the case said the teenager was emaciated and the living conditions were unsafe and unsanitary. They described toilets that were not working, animal feces on the floor throughout the house, little food and windows covered with blankets.
The Moores were initially charged with second degree murder for the death of that teen as well as six counts of child neglect.
On Monday, November 4, their father, 46-year-old Dominique Moore, pleaded guilty to six counts of child neglect. Last month their mother, 41-year-old Cynthia Moore, was found guilty of six counts of child neglect.
They will both face up to 30 years in prison when sentenced next year.
The other six minor children who were living in the home were put in foster care, according to officials.
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